Aritz Aduriz Praises Erika Vazquez And Women’s Football At Athletic Club

Believe it or not, Aritz Aduriz is the most prolific goalscorer at Athletic right now. That honor belongs to Erika Vazquez from the Women’s team. The 36-year-old forward has scored over 250 goals for the Neskak and is widely respected by everyone at the club. She and Aduriz do have a lot in common. For starters, they are both advanced in age for footballers but continued to play at a very high level.

“The first thing that the figures tell me is that we are older because to achieve these numbers it takes a lot of time”, Aduriz said during an interview with Vamos about their goalscoring prowess. “More than numbers, I like people who don’t decay and maintain that consistency for so long, that perseverance is why Erika has the numbers that she has.”

Vazquez also had words of praise for Aduriz. “For me, Aritz is an example of overcoming, of perseverance, of working every day.”, she said. “I know that when he celebrates his birthday there is a lot of work during the whole week to be there. Years go by and you are more aware when they tell you the figures that you have achieved.”

A few months ago Vazquez was part of the team that witnessed a historic crowd at San Mamés for a match against Atlético Madrid. “There are no words to describe playing at San Mamés”, she explained. “You have to feel it and live it. It’s wonderful. We were told that fans would respond, but when you go up the stairs and see that it’s incredible. Our reality is not filling San Mamés of the Wanda, but every game at Lezama there are 3,000-4,000 people. That is our reality, but yes, we are in a sweet moment.”

Aduriz certainly recognizes the importance of that historic match. They are opening and filling stadiums because they are getting better and they play better”, he said. “They are generating excitement and expectation that attracts a lot of fans. The truth is that they usually give more joy than we do.” He also wishes that every fan could experience playing at the Cathedral. “I would like any Athletic fan to at least feel it once in their life. There are so many emotions because when you score a goal and see all that happiness in the whole stadium it’s special.”